Both the all-new Mazda6 and CX-5, which feature the company’s innovative fuel-saving SKYACTIV technology, were voted best-in-class at the annual 2013 Auto Express New Car Awards.

The all-new Mazda6 saloon beat off strong competition to win the ‘Best Family Car’ award – the seventh award it has received since going on sale in January. The Mazda CX-5 compact SUV claimed the ‘Best Crossover’ crown for the second year at this event.

Announcing Mazda6 as a winner, Auto Express editor-in-chief, Steve Fowler, commented: “The new Mazda6 brought a number of firsts to the family car class – it uses clever technology to reduce running costs, cut emissions and boost mpg, while it’s also a fantastic car to drive. On top of that, it’s the sort of car you can’t get enough of looking at… it’s simply gorgeous.”

Praising the CX-5, Mazda’s compact family SUV for retaining its crossover crown, Fowler added: “It’s a second win for the brilliant CX-5 at the Auto Express Awards. This is a car that rewrote the rulebooks for crossovers last year with a blend of great looks, useful practicality, loads of technology and low running costs – it’s going to be a tough winner for any other car to beat.”

Assessing the all-new Mazda6 and CX-5 and their class rivals, the magazine’s judging panel scrutinized each car’s driving attributes, interior quality, running costs and purchase price. The panel of Auto Express writers looked for cars that set new standards in their class. The winners are the cars the magazine recommends its readers spend their hard-earned cash on.

"Mazda is proud that its truly innovative fuel-saving SKYACTIV technology and KODO- Soul of Motion design theme featured in both the Mazda6 and CX-5 models, have been acknowledged by a high profile publication, such as Auto Express. Mazda offer unrivaled environmentally friendly vehicles to our customers, without the price premium charged by other eco brands,” comments Tony Howarth, Managing Director, Mazda Ireland.

Priced from €28,745, the Mazda6 is available in Saloon or Tourer body styles. The 2.2-litre Diesel with the 6-speed manual gearbox is the big seller with an impressive 20% improvement on efficiency delivering 108g/km of CO₂ and fuel economy of 4.2 l/100km (67mpg). Performance is not sacrificed thanks to 150ps of power and 380Nm of torque.

The Mazda CX-5 is available from €28,895, in three equipment grades. This compact SUV delivers class leading fuel economy of 4.6L/100kms (61mpg), with CO2 emissions as low as 119g/km, which many rivals such as the Ford Kuga, VW Tiguan and Kia Sportage simply cannot match.